The Pauldron Master [PrC]

[Xefas]

”Pay attention, young ones, for I shall now impart to you the greatest truth we, as mortals, can claim to have. Quite simply, G = P = (s1+s2+s3). A man’s greatness and effect on the universe as a whole is directly proportionate to the impressiveness of his pauldrons, which is a simple function of its Size, Shininess, and Spikiness.”
~Veteran Pauldron Master to his students

Hit Die: d10
Skill Points: 4 + intelligence modifier
Class Skills: Appraise, Balance, Climb, Concentration, Craft, Diplomacy, Intimidate, Knowledge (any two, chosen by the player), Profession, Ride, Sense Motive

Requirements:
Base Attack Bonus: +5
Skills: Craft (Armorsmithing) 1 rank
Special: Proficiency with all Heavy Armors

Pauldron Master
{table=head]Level|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Special
1st|

+1

|

+2

|

+0

|

+2

|Size Modification
2nd|

+2

|

+3

|

+0

|

+3

|Pointy Additions
3rd|

+3

|

+3

|

+1

|

+3

|Ornamentation
4th|

+4

|

+4

|

+1

|

+4

|Improved Size
5th|

+5

|

+4

|

+1

|

+4

|Paragon of Pauldrons [/table]

Size Modification (Ex): At 1st level, a Pauldron Master learns to properly modify the shoulders of a suit of heavy armor in order to reach maximum effectiveness at his current level. A good guideline is that each shoulder should look slightly larger than one’s head. The true benefit of this ability is the sharp increase of “badass” this has on the Master, but as a side effect, it gives him unshakable self confidence that radiates from every pore of his being. The Master becomes immune to fear effects, and all allies within 10 feet of him gain a +2 morale bonus against fear. Modifying a single suit of armor requires 100gp worth of parts and two days of uninterrupted work. Only Pauldron Masters of the appropriate level gain benefit from this, though it need not be the same Master who made them.
Pointy Additions (Ex): At 2nd level, the Pauldron Master has connected so deeply with the soul of his shoulder armor, that he derives supernatural benefit from its spikiness. Sometimes this entails actual spikes, but other times simply curving a pauldron so that it appears bladed is enough. When a Pauldron Master makes a charge while equipped with properly modified pauldrons, all opponents that he comes within 15 feet of at any time of the charge must make a DC (10 + ½ the Master’s character level + the Master’s charisma modifier) or become shaken for 1 minute (multiple applications do not increase to become "frightened" or "panicked", but they do reset the duration). If a victim of this ability successfully saves, they are immune to the Pointy Additions of the same Master for the next 24 hours. The Pauldrons to be modified with Pointy Additions must have already undergone the Size Modification, and it requires an additional 60gp worth of materials and a day of uninterrupted work.
Ornamentation (Ex): At 3rd level, a Pauldron Master further increases the magnitude of awesome that permeates his already undeniably great pauldrons. This Ornamentation can involve any number of things, from shaping the metal into a specific shape, to attaching religious documents with wax seals. Whatever the change, it bolsters the radiance of the Master’s soul with every success, restoring 2 hit points to him with every successful melee strike. For a Pauldron to be modified in this way, it must have already had Pointy Additions, and it requires an additional 300gp worth of parts and 5 days of uninterrupted work.
Improved Size (Ex): A 4th level Pauldron Master can increase the size of his pauldrons even further, gaining even greater benefits. Once this addition has been made, each individual pauldron should be equal to the Master’s torso region in size. While the newly bolstered armor is worn, the Master gains a +2 bonus on all will saves, saves against becoming nauseated, and on all opposed checks to resist Bull Rushes, Overruns, Trips, Disarms, Sunders, and Grapples. To give a pauldron Improved Size, it must already have Ornamentation, and an additional 600gp worth of parts and 5 days of uninterrupted work.
Paragon of Pauldrons (Ex) At 5th level, a Pauldron Master embodies the pure essence of a mortal’s zest for life. Destiny, Deities, and Design are all cast aside for the one truth indelibly printed upon the patchwork of sentience itself- Pauldrons Win. With a firm knowledge of this, the Master makes one final modification to his shoulder armor as an eternal reminder. Whatever this modification may be, while the pauldrons so adorned are worn by the Master, he is immune to all mind-affected abilities. Before he can make this adjustment however, he must spend 1000gp and 1 week of uninterrupted work on pauldrons that have already received Improved Size.

[DracoDei]

proportionate to the size of his pauldrons

Since you later list size as one of the components, I would change the underlined word to "awesomeness", or at least "impressiveness".

[brian c]

G = P = (s1+s2+s3). A man’s greatness and effect on the universe as a whole is directly proportionate to the size of his pauldrons

I volunteer to be the math nerd of this thread. If G is directly proportional to P, then it should be G = kP for some constant k

[RandomFellow]

I volunteer to be the math nerd of this thread. If G is directly proportional to P, then it should be G = kP for some constant k

If the constant is 1...adding k is redundant.

-----------
Something that worries me about this class is the fact that fear effects (such as Shaken) normally stack. (e.g. Shaken'd twice = Frightened, a third time = Panicked) And with the 1/2HD+ChaMod at 10th level the DC is already higher than a 4th level spell. By 20th the DC is higher than a 9th level spell.

Maybe make the DC 14+ChaMod?

[brian c]

If the constant is 1...adding k is redundant.

-----------
Something that worries me about this class is the fact that fear effects (such as Shaken) normally stack. (e.g. Shaken'd twice = Frightened, a third time = Panicked) And with the 1/2HD+ChaMod at 10th level the DC is already higher than a 4th level spell. By 20th the DC is higher than a 9th level spell.

Maybe make the DC 14+ChaMod?

If k = 1, then it's not proportional (well technically it is), it's just equal. I assume that since he said proportional that he mean proportional with k not =1

[Xefas]

Since you later list size as one of the components, I would change the underlined word to "awesomeness", or at least "impressiveness".

Done.

I volunteer to be the math nerd of this thread. If G is directly proportional to P, then it should be G = kP for some constant k

If I told you that the quote came from an uneducated man with no grasp of mathematics whatsoever, who was just trying to impressive his impressionable students, would that...err...work?

Something that worries me about this class is the fact that fear effects (such as Shaken) normally stack. (e.g. Shaken'd twice = Frightened, a third time = Panicked) And with the 1/2HD+ChaMod at 10th level the DC is already higher than a 4th level spell. By 20th the DC is higher than a 9th level spell.

I changed it to not stack, but to reset the Shaken duration. Does that work?

[RandomFellow]

...


I changed it to not stack, but to reset the Shaken duration. Does that work?

Yep. Shaken is just an annoyance. Higher states of fear effectively made his Charges Save Twice or Die. =)

If k = 1, then it's not proportional (well technically it is), it's just equal. I assume that since he said proportional that he mean proportional with k not =1

This does not invalidate my point.

[Looptwiss]

I volunteer to be the math nerd of this thread. If G is directly proportional to P, then it should be G = kP for some constant k

I was about to point that out. But you beat me to it. I suppose I could add a little bit more to it however.

Direct proportionality tends to be proportional with respect to the integers, therefore it should be G=kP for some constant k is an element of Z+. I'm using the positive integers since, frankly, who wants negative Pauldrons?

[brian c]

I was about to point that out. But you beat me to it. I suppose I could add a little bit more to it however.

Direct proportionality tends to be proportional with respect to the integers, therefore it should be G=kP for some constant k is an element of Z+. I'm using the positive integers since, frankly, who wants negative Pauldrons?

I would use R+, doesn't really have to be an integer. Hopefully it's an irrational number, so we can calculate it and call it the Pauldron Constant

Next week, when I'm done with finals, I'm going to go through the bonuses that this class gets and try to figure out the Pauldron Constant; I think the best notation would be k-sub-p (kp)

[BarroomBard]

Wow....

I never thought I would be able to say this on a forum dedicated to homebrewed RPG stuff... what with the background radiation of nerditude... and my being a member of said forum...

But you guys are nerds.